2014

To our family and friends:

The Christmas lights are up and snow is on the ground so it is the perfect time to write this year’s Christmas letter. 2014 has been an eventful and exciting year for us. We moved into our new home just before the start of the year and with the help of family and friends, we started our long list of renovations by scraping the popcorn ceilings, painting the entire interior, cleaning up the yard, and other small projects.

Both of us were honored to be a part of two weddings this past February. I was the maid of honor in my best friend Jamie’s wedding in Seattle and Phillip was a groomsman in his friend Mike’s wedding which was held in Bonney Lake. Both weddings were beautiful and celebrated with great parties after.

I moved down to Sacramento at the end of March for my six month pediatric echosonography internship at UC Davis Children’s Hospital. My uncle Bob was gracious enough to allow me to stay with him and during that time together we enjoyed visits to San Francisco, Monterey and Carmel, Lake Tahoe, and other activities. I also spent a weekend in Napa and Sonoma with Phillip when he came to visit. My parents surprised me over Easter weekend only to have to leave early because their first grandchild was being born early!

Colin and Whitney gave birth to a beautiful girl, Hayden, who at 7 months is now on the verge of crawling and just got her first tooth! We welcomed a number of other babies other into our lives this year between our family and friends. It is exciting to see how everyone’s lives are changing!

I flew home in August to celebrate two important events – Our first anniversary and Heather & Nathan’s wedding. Phillip was an usher for the ceremony which was held at Christ Lutheran Church in Lakewood with a reception full of family and friends at Lake Lawrence in Yelm. We spent the next day, our one-year anniversary, at the Salish Lodge overlooking Snoqualmie Falls before I had to fly out for my final month in California.

Phillip is quickly working his way up in his career at BergerABAM by receiving another promotion and increased responsibility. The majority of his summer was spent working long hours out at Bangor Naval Base where he inspected pile driving and construction for one of the largest waterfront projects under construction on the west coast. In March, he was sent on a trip to Panama for a week where he visited the sites of several of his current projects, attended meetings, and dodged street gangs. Most recently, he and two other members of the ABAM dive team were sent to Tennessee for an underwater bridge inspection where they examined the foundations of five bridges on Ft. Campbell military base. They finished the four-day trip by exploring Nashville’s Broadway Street where they enjoyed live music and good BBQ.

I eagerly moved home at the end of September at the culmination of my internship, having graduated Summa Cum Laude from Seattle University. I passed the adult echocardiography boards in November and recently was offered my dream job; a full-time position at Children’s Hospital in Seattle where I will be starting just prior to Christmas. I will sit for the pediatric boards in March.

In celebration of being back together and graduating from school, we took a fantastic trip to Maui in October. We stayed in a condo near Ka’anapali beach and enjoyed scuba diving, snorkeling with turtles, paddle boarding, a sunset dinner cruise, and watching the sunrise atop Haleakala before taking a 26 mile bike ride down the volcano to the beach. We even ran into my cousins Scott and Sarah!

We took a quick weekend trip to Spokane in late October to participate in Eli’s baptism (Phillip’s cousin’s son) and will return to spend Christmas with Olson side of the family this year. The holiday weekend will be completed with Hayden’s baptism back in Snoqualmie.

It is this time of year where we reflect on all the great experiences we’ve had this past year and the blessings of all the amazing people in our lives. We wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy 2015!

Love,

Phillip & Briana